1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a transducer suspension system and more particularly to a suspension system having a flexible mount for the transducer head.
2. Description of Prior Art
Direct access storage devices (DASD), or disk drives, store information on concentric tracks of a rotatable magnetic recording disk. A magnetic head or transducer element is moved from track to track to record and read the desired information. Typically, the magnetic head is positioned on an air bearing slider which flies above the surface of the disk as the disk rotates. In some proposed disk drives, the slider (or carrier) rides on a liquid film or bearing on the disk. A suspension assembly connects the slider to a rotary or linear actuator. The suspension provides support for the slider.
The suspension must meet several requirements. The suspension must be flexible and provide a bias force in the vertical direction. This is necessary to provide a compensating force to the lifting force of the air bearing in order to keep the slider at the correct height above the disk. Also, vertical flexibility is needed to allow the slider to be loaded and unloaded away from the disk. Another requirement of the suspension is that it must provide a pivotal connection for the slider. Irregularities in operation may result in misalignment of the slider. The slider is able to compensate for these problems by pitching and/or rolling slightly to maintain the proper orientation necessary for the air bearing. Another requirement of the suspension is that it must be rigid in the lateral direction. This is needed to prevent the head from moving from side to side, which will result in the head reading the wrong track.
Disk drives have become smaller in size, and the recording track density has increased dramatically. This has necessitated the use of smaller and smaller heads and suspensions. The smaller size makes it more difficult to string individual wires along the suspension to the head. Recently, electrical leads (or lines) have been integrally formed directly into the suspension by etching or deposition, in order to do away with the need to string separate wires.
As the disk drives have decreased in size, some of the parts have become more delicate. The flexure which provides the mount for the transducer head is one such delicate element. During manufacture or later during operation, a severe shock may cause the transducer head to move violently on the flexure causing the flexure to permanently deform. Also, for slider load/unload applications, it is necessary to limit flexure motion in order to prevent physical damage. Once deformed, the flexure will no longer be able to properly orient the transducer head for normal operations. What is needed is a more robust design for protecting the flexure.